The Proof is in the beer

Tallahassee is fast becoming a beer drinker’s paradise.
A year ago Florida’s capital city did not have a brewpub, and hadn’t had one for almost a decade.
My, how the scene is changing. Starting this Wednesday, when Proof on West Tennessee officially transforms into Proof Brewing Co. and begins serving its own creations, Tallahassee will be able to claim two brewpubs. Momo’s at Market Square was the first to launch when it started pouring its own beers last fall.
PBC, like Momo’s, has long had a first-rate selection of craft ales on tap. But Proof owner Byron Burroughs has been eager to make his own beer almost from the moment he opened the bar next to his store, Liquor Loft, four years ago.
“It was a matter of watching and learning the market,” Burroughs told me.
He started actively planning to convert his beer-centric bar into a brewpub two years ago and has been actively working to clear every hurdle with the state for more than six months.
Local home brewer Larry Agee, who has a fondness for Belgian-style ales, is PBC’s brewmaster.
PBC is planning an 8 p.m. Wednesday kickoff celebration, with two house ales – an Americanized wheat and a generously hopped rye pale ale – set to get the party started. Neither beer has been named as yet, so this is clearly a work in progress.
Burroughs will wait two weeks after next Wednesday to roll out two more house products, with the goal to have four PBC beers on tap at all times along with the two dozen-plus craft tap handles.
Proof, unlike Mom’s, is a licensed distributor so it will be selling – and refilling – growlers.
This is indeed great news for those of us who care about beer, really great news. It’s amazing how much the local scene has changed during the past five years, all for the better.

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About The Author

I'm a senior writer at the Tallahassee Democrat. I primarily write about higher education, but this blog usually focuses on beer or wine or the occasional spirit. I'm a former home brewer, and I have been a judge at state and local beer competitions.